Elon Musk Is Always Carrying His Son Around With Him, but Why Does He Do That?

As strange as it may sound, Elon Musk is one of the most powerful people inside the federal government. His official government role is actually a little unclear, but through the informal Department of Government Efficiency, Musk has been able to make sweeping changes to the government that almost definitely aren't legal.

On Feb. 11, Musk appeared next to President Trump in the Oval Office to take questions from reporters, and he brought his son with him. His son drew some attention, but it also led some to wonder why Musk seems to always have his son in tow. Here's what we know.

At the top of the press conference with Trump, the president introduced Elon's son.

"This is X, and he's a great guy — high IQ," he said. X seemed to get distracted throughout the press conference, and Musk at one point put his son on his shoulders and X stuck his fingers in his ears.

"Sorry for this," Musk said. "Otherwise, I might enjoy this, but as he's sticking his fingers in my ears ..."

That particular incident was just one recent occasion where X, whose full name is X Æ A-Xii (we know), was seen being carried around by his dad as he moves through Washington. Musk has never explained the rhyme or reason behind X's appearances at various public events, so we don't know exactly what he's thinking when he takes his son around in public.

The most charitable explanation is that Musk wants to be present in his son's life but is also quite busy running the federal government, so he basically has to take his kid to work in order to see him. The less charitable read is that he wants to look like a good father, and so he's decided to use his son as something of a prop, carting him around in public so everyone can see just how good of a dad he is.

That second explanation is not all that hard to uncover, though, especially given how often he seems to be photographed with his son on his shoulders.

There are also those who have said — both jokingly and with some sincerity — that Elon views his son as some kind of "human shield" who can protect him from dangerous situations, particularly as this behavior became especially prevalent after UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was killed.

It's worth noting that X is advantageous at events like a press conference because he provides a distraction from Musk's actual answers to questions, especially when he acts like none of this is all that important to him.

We don't know for sure why Musk takes his kid with him in public sometimes, and we also have very little insight into what kind of father he is to X behind closed doors. What seems clear, though, is that not all of Musk's children think he's a great father.

He's very publicly feuded with and disavowed his trans daughter, and seems to have radicalized against trans people in general as a result. Musk may have 12 kids, but not all of them appreciate their father's presence or lack thereof in their lives.